6/23/2010 @ 6:30PM

Quick Financial Fixes

Getting your financial house in order can seem so overwhelming that it can paralyze you into doing nothing at all: the piles of bills, endless account numbers to contend with, debts to pay and goals to set all become an unwieldy mess too massive to conquer.

It doesn’t have to be so tough, says Denise Winston, a banker turned personal finance educator. In fact, there are many money-related tasks you can tackle in less than 10 minutes are important for getting your money house under control.

“Getting your finances in order can be fun, easy and have huge rewards when you break it down in to small steps,” Winston says. “Once you start saving time and money it makes you want to do more.”

Here are 20 steps you can tackle. Each takes less than 10 minutes, so there’s no excuse for not taking action.

1. Don’t wait until April to get your tax documents in order. Instead, at the beginning of the year, label the divisions of an accordion folder. When you have a few minutes, tackle that pile of receipts and stow each one in the appropriate section.

2. Tackle that pile of bills on your desk. Writing checks, stuffing envelopes and finding stamps can be done in a matter of minutes.

3. Set up auto-pay for a recurring bill. Whether it’s a utility, insurance premium, credit card or even magazine subscription, put those expenses on autopilot and forget about them.

4. Well, don’t totally forget about them. Once a month go over credit and bank statements to make sure nothing is amiss.

5. Call your cable company and ask for a better rate. Tell them you’re prepared to walk.

14. Review warranties on appliances, cars and your home, and schedule necessary repairs before they expire.

15. Automate a monthly contribution to your savings account. If you’ve already done this, bump it up by $50.

16. Create a strategy to get out of debt. Sort credit cards, home equity lines, car and student loans by either highest annual percentage rate or lowest balance, and create a plan to pay them off.

17. If you own your home, call a broker you trust to determine whether it is worth it to refinance your mortgage.

18. Create a savings plan for a luxury indulgence, be it a long-dreamed-about vacation, a piece of jewelry or a new piece of furniture. Even if the purchase date is far off into the future, this gives you something to work toward and look forward to.